


Would You Remember to Tell Me all the Things You Forgot?

by LydiaOLydia



Category: One Day at a Time (TV 2017)
Genre: 90s AU, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Drug Use, F/M, Fluff, Mention of Underage Sex, Pre-Season/Series 04, shameless nostalgia, young men using way too much cologne
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-19 07:47:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 863
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29996151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LydiaOLydia/pseuds/LydiaOLydia
Summary: Penelope needs Schneider's help finding some clothes for Alex's 90s Night at School. Digging through his clothes brings back some memories for her. But will Schneider remember?
Relationships: Penelope Alvarez/Schneider
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5





	Would You Remember to Tell Me all the Things You Forgot?

**Author's Note:**

> This work was inspired by Marcel Ruiz's growth spurt, the Captain Marvel soundtrack, and a certain fragrance that carries more memories for me than even the inescapable One by Calvin Klein. 
> 
> I have no regrets.

_Ahora_

Penelope paced back and forth in front of Schneider's door. She was about to knock again, harder this time, (he couldn't always hear her over the pan flute) when the door shot open.

"Pen, what's up?" Good, he was wearing his usual uniform of flannel and ridiculous fancy jeans so she wasn’t interrupted at a weird hobby moment. (She had made him swear they would never again speak of the mime outfit that still haunted her dreams).

"Schneider, Alex has a fashion emergency."

"And you're asking me for help? Finally!" His face lit up like a neon sign. "Let me grab the keys. I've been dying for a male bonding shopping trip."

"Slow your roll. " Penelope followed him into his apartment and shut the door. "Alex is going to a school dance. The theme is 90s Night. Somehow I can't convince him my cargo pants are unisex."

He shook his head. "They are definitely not unisex. Also, they're way too short for him because he's a foot -"

Penelope slapped her hand over his mouth. "No, no. My baby boy is not towering over me, la la la, I don't know what you're talking about."

He wiggled his eyebrows at her until she lowered her hand, the bristles of his beard only leaving a slight tingle in her palm.

“Permission to speak freely, ma’am?”

Penelope rolled her eyes. "Real cute. Spit it out.”

"So Alex and I aren't recreating an iconic scene from _Pretty Woman_. Disappointing, but we’ve got to save something for his eighteenth birthday anyways. What's the actual plan?"

She shrugged. "I figured he could borrow one of your flannel shirts and he could wear it unbuttoned over an old band shirt."”

He frowned. "I don't see Alex as a grunge kind of guy."

Pen dragged her fingers through her hair. "Yeah, well, he needs to give his mom a little bit more warning if he wants to be picky."

"I might have something for him.”

"Do you have anything he can borrow that you can find in thirty minutes?"

"I've downsized a lot, but I've still got some things that still sparked joy.” He disappeared for a while. There were some loud ka-thunk noises, a small yelp, and then he came dragging out a battered old trunk.

She tapped her chin, thinking. "Was this from your Schneiderdini period? A half-sawed lady isn't going to pop out?"

"I was Schneider El Magnifico and it is, sadly, lady free.” He flung himself down on the floor, clearly done laboring for the day. 

She knelt down beside the trunk, popped it open and started sorting through odds and ends. "Let's see what we got here." She shoved aside a pair of bright purple overalls and some acid washed stuff (Alex would never go for that) to see other promising things lurked in the depths of this beast.

"Ah-hah!" She pulled out a bright red oversized bowling shirt that screamed "Chandler Bing." She shook it out and got smacked in the face with a smell that was half ocean breeze, half super ripe marijuana. She wheezed, trying to get the salty, gamey taste out of her mouth.

Schneider cleared his throat. "It might need to be aired out a bit."

"Aired out a bit? More like it needs industrial detergent." She stared at the shirt. It felt silky under her fingertips. Totally on brand for Schneider back in the day. Something percolated in her brain. She leaned in for a closer sniff.

It wasn't the scent of low tide at the beach. It was Davidoff's Cool Water, every pimply boy's signature fragrance when she was a teenager. That faint tickling feeling in her subconscious got stronger. No, it couldn't be. She looked over at him, tilted her head. Squinted. Something began to get clearer.

"In the 90s, you had a Caesar haircut? And a goatee?"

He scratched at his beard. "Yeah, we may have time to get Alex a haircut, but you can't grow a goatee in two hours and you made me throw my disguise kit away, remember?"

"You liked Boyz II Men and TLC?” She let the words trail off, hoping he’d get the hint.

"I mean, "No Scrubs" is just a classic, am I right? This isn't one of your hooking up at a concert stories, is it? Because I don't think we have time if we're getting Alex to this thing.”

"No this isn't about a hookup. Not exactly," she said slowly, waiting for him to catch on. She had forgotten about it until now, it would take him a minute or two. He stared at her blankly. The bargain basement version of Zamfir crooned in the background, adding a slightly weird tension to the whole thing.

"What are you thinking about?" He tilted his head, just waiting and curious. No recognition there.

He didn't remember. He really didn't remember. Which was sad, but not surprising considering the condition he had been in at the time. She knew there was a lot of pre-sobriety stuff Schneider wasn't proud of. Maybe it was better if she didn't remind him.

Penelope shook her head. "Nothing. I wasn't thinking about anything at all."

**Author's Note:**

> This work is going to be at least 2 chapters. This is just a short set-up.  
> Fair warning -  
> The next chapter is the one that will *mention* alcohol, drugs, and underage sex. It will still definitely be fluff.
> 
> ETA Apparently it is Cool Water, not Cool Waters. I had misremembered. Ah time, you are indeed a cruel mistress.


End file.
